'No joke': B.C. minister laughs off lawsuit claiming proof of Bigfoot

'Sasquatch hunter' taking B.C. government to court Todd Standing is alleging 'dereliction of duty pertaining to the interests of an indigenous wildlife species.'

A self-proclaimed “sasquatch tracker” and documentarian with a history of dramatic, unproven claims is suing the provincial government of B.C. in an effort to “prove” the existence of Bigfoot in court.

Director Todd Standing claims he has photographic proof of the mythical creature’s existence in his upcoming documentary, “Discovering Bigfoot,” and that provincial wildlife officials are turning a blind eye to his findings.

His lawsuit calls for a judge to declare that sasquatch exists, and for a wildlife official to accompany him on a three-month hunt for one of the creatures.

“I’ve seen sasquatch so many times,” he told CTV Vancouver. “I mean, over 50 times. I’ve filmed them eight different times.”

He claims fish and wildlife officials are deliberately ignoring his findings, which do not include any actual specimens, living or dead.

“They won’t look at the evidence. That’s why I must go into court to prove it,” he said.

The trailer for Standing’s film shows him running through the forest wearing camouflage, and recording distant blurry objects by day and at night.

The trailer promises “camouflage penetration, terrain survival, counter-surveillance” and “escape techniques.”

George Heyman, B.C.’s minister of the environment, laughed off a question about sasquatch this week. Nevertheless, a taxpayer-funded lawyer will be required to address the civil claim in court, where it’s expected they will ask for it to be thrown out.

“I have a lawyer who I’ve just, I’m in negotiations with, who thinks we can win this,” Standing said.

He also dismissed criticism from others in the sasquatch-hunting community who have accused him of launching frivolous lawsuits to promote his documentary.

“Of course I have my haters,” he said. “Gandhi, Mother Teresa, Einstein, they had tremendous haters.”

Standing has been pursuing the mythical creature for over a decade. He claimed to have photographic evidence of Bigfoot in 2011, and in 2014 he claimed to have DNA evidence of its existence. He also convinced Les Stroud, star of the television show “Survivorman,” to follow him on a hunt for the creature.

None of his claims have been scientifically verified.

“This is a very serious undertaking,” he told CTV Vancouver. “This is no joke.”

With files from CTV Vancouver